subject: The King of the Jungle [print this page] The King of the Jungle The King of the Jungle
This is the Lion. He is the favorite of all the wild cats and the most famous of the big five. The lion lives in a pride of about three males and up to fifteen females and their cubs. The females are the ones who hunt for food while the males protect the pride especially from other male lions that would want to take over the pride. There is usually one lion that is in charge of the pride. A visit to Kenya is not complete without watching these great cats going on with there day to day business in the jungle.
Lions are purely carnivores and they only consume fresh meat. They can be found where there is a lot of prey such as impalas, gazelles, buffaloes, wildebeest and zebras. The females work as a team to bring down a desired prey. Once they make a catch, they invite the other members of the family to feast. The female lion is smaller than the male lion. The lion has a mane that covers the neck and part of the back.
If the dominating male lions are defeated by intruding lions, the latter take over the pride, kill all the cubs and sire there own with the females. The lions hunt early in the morning and late at night when the sun is not very hot. During the day, the lions take cover under shady shrubs and trees. You can find them playing with the cubs as they wait for the sun to cool off for them to be able to hunt again.
